surviving

The Shrinking of Higher Ed — A Special Report from The Chronicle of Higher Education
A special report on the implications of the enrollment contraction.

Excerpt:

Nearly 1.3 million students have disappeared from American colleges since the Covid-19 pandemic began. That enrollment contraction comes at a precarious moment for the sector. Inflation is driving up costs and straining budgets, stock-market volatility is putting downward pressure on endowment returns, and federal stimulus funds are running out. Why is the enrollment crunch happening now? How are colleges responding? What might turn things around? Those are the questions fueling this special report.

A Public Regional on the Edge — from chronicle.com by Eric Kelderman
New Jersey City University’s plan to grow its way out of financial trouble backfired. What went wrong?

Excerpts:

NJCU’s story is a cautionary tale for similar institutions — small public regional colleges with ambitions to expand in a crowded higher-education market. While its real-estate dealings have drawn unfavorable scrutiny, the university was responding to challenges that face its peers, in northern New Jersey and around the country: increased competition for a declining number of high-school graduates.
…
Public regional universities, like NJCU, enroll about 40 percent of all college students nationally, and a far larger percentage of minority, low-income, and first-generation students than better-known flagships and top research universities do.
…
But a lack of state support, limited ability to attract students from outside the region, and sparse fund raising have made the university vulnerable to economic downturns and demographic shifts that have led to fewer high-school graduates, especially in the Northeast and upper Midwest.

Linked to in the above article was this article:

Declining enrollment has Western Michigan University on budgetary tightrope — from mlive.com by Julie Mack

Excerpts:

KALAMAZOO, MI — Western Michigan University has 17,835 students this fall, its lowest enrollment since the 1960s.

The number is down 6% from last fall. Down 27% from a decade ago, when the fall headcount was 24,598. Down 41% from 20 years ago, when WMU’s fall count peaked at 29,732.

And thanks to a declining birthrate and a shrinking percentage of new high school graduates enrolling in college, that downward enrollment trend is likely to continue indefinitely.

Rather, “what COVID did was force our hand after years of pressure created by declining enrollment and demographic trends that suggest declines will continue for the next decade,” she said. “So while COVID brought our financial situation into sharp relief, the budget cut was a measure taken to relieve pressure created over many, many years.”

A relevant addendum here:

Avoiding the Trap of Too Little Too Late — from tytonpartners.com by Trace Urdan; with thanks to Ryan Craig for this resource

Excerpt:

The challenges facing higher education are well understood: a demographic cliff of traditional-aged applicants, a declining proportion of full-pay families, and a growing skepticism of the value of (ever-more) expensive post-secondary degrees with resulting student consumerism. Add to this rapidly rising technological complexity, deferred maintenance on deteriorating physical assets, escalating administrative costs associated with student services and supports, and a burgeoning array of college substitutes, and the challenges are clear. The combination of lower tuition revenue and higher costs points toward an inevitable sector consolidation. And while many college administrators will readily acknowledge this point in the abstract, few will consider that it might apply to them.

To future-proof a workforce, kill the perpetual hiring machine and embrace lifelong learning [Dillow]

On 11/10/2022, in adult learning, business, career development, change, changing business models, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, leadership, lifelong learning, new business models, reinvent, skills, staying relevant, strategy, surviving, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

To future-proof a workforce, kill the perpetual hiring machine and embrace lifelong learning — from fortune.com by Clay Dillow

Excerpt:

A looming economic slowdown, the Great Resignation, a relentlessly expanding skills gap, and employees that would simply rather work from home. This week at Fortune’s CEO Initiative forum, a panel of company executives discussed the litany of challenges they face in developing and maintaining their workforces over the next several years.

What’s Stopping You from Reinventing Your Career? [Cairns-Lee & Fischer]

On 11/05/2022, in business, career development, corporate / business world, Design Thinking, leadership, MBA, reinvent, skills, staying relevant, surviving, workplace, by Daniel Christian

What’s Stopping You from Reinventing Your Career? — from hbr.org by Heather Cairns-Lee and Bill Fischer; with thanks to Mr. Roberto Ferraro for this resource

Summary (emphasis DSC):

In the authors’ work teaching and coaching thousands of managers, they have identified four traps – self-sufficiency, overthinking, procrastination and searching for the answer – that prevent leaders from taking the first steps necessary for considering and exploring possible new versions of themselves for the future. The authors have found ways to help leaders recognize which traps they are falling into and start imagining a way out — largely inspired by design thinking principles such as rapid prototyping, making ideas visual, and getting quick feedback.

2023 Top 10 IT Issues: Foundation Models — from educause.edu

Excerpt:

Recent times have brought about a Great Rethink that is upending previous models of management and working. Higher education is no exception. In 2023, institutional and technology leaders are ready for a new approach.

The EDUCAUSE 2023 Top 10 IT Issues help describe the foundation models that colleges and universities will develop next year and beyond, acting on what was learned in the pandemic and framed by the three building blocks of leadership, data, and work and learning.

See where things are headed in 2023 and beyond.
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From DSC:
At this point in time, I’d find your visionary, innovative, tech-savvy leaders out there — and not just for IT-related positions but for Presidents, Provosts, CFO’s, Heads of HR, and similar levels of positions (and ideally on the Boards as well.) Such people need to be at the table when strategies are hammered out.

For example, if your institution didn’t get seriously into online learning long before Covid19 hit, I’d clear house and go back to the drawing board on your leadership.

Also, data won’t save higher ed. New directions/pathways might. But I’m doubtful that new sources of data will — no matter how they are sliced and diced. That sort of thing is too much at the fringe of things — and not at the heart of what’s being offered. The marketplace will eventually dictate to higher ed which directions institutions of traditional higher education need to go in. Or perhaps I should say that this is already starting to occur.

If alternatives to institutions of traditional higher education continue to grow in acceptance and usage — and don’t involve current institutions of higher ed — those sorts of institutions may already be too late. If more corporations fully develop their own training programs, pathways, and credentials, there may be even fewer students to go around.

A final thought: Cheaper forms of online-based learning for the liberal arts may be what actually saves the liberal arts in the long run.

Also relevant/see:

Teaching and Learning Perspectives on the EDUCAUSE 2023 Top 10 IT Issues — from er.educause.edu
by Kim Arnold, Christopher Francique, Crystal Gasell, Allan Gyorke, Phil Ventimiglia and Kathe Pelletier
CIO and Senior Technology Leaders’ Perspectives on the EDUCAUSE 2023 Top 10 IT Issues — from er.educause.edu by Jennifer Burns, John Dunning, Jane Livingston, Jackie Malcolm, Dave Robinson and Betsy Reinitz

Reflections on “Attention higher-ed leaders: Faculty and staff have something to say” [Landon]

On 10/29/2022, in adjunct faculty, blogs / blogging / vlogging, business side of he, career development, colleges, community colleges, Daniel S. Christian, faculty, higher education, love of learning, reinvent, skills, staying relevant, surviving, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Attention higher-ed leaders: Faculty and staff have something to say — from ecampusnews.com by Jen Landon; with thanks to Ray Schroeder for this resource
Higher-ed leaders can apply the same listening skills and level of investment put forth for students toward their workers

Excerpts:

An organization’s greatest asset is its people. In no other industry is that more true than in higher education. The importance of faculty and staff can’t be overstated; they are, in every way, core to carrying out the mission of higher education.
…
Institutions should put employee satisfaction at the top of their list from day one: investing in the growth and success of faculty and staff with as much determination as they invest in student success. This mindset should extend to job candidates as well.

From DSC:
I appreciate some attention being paid here to the career/skill development of faculty and staff, as well as to the attempts to create caring cultures. Higher ed has a lot to learn from the corporate world in terms of training its managers, supervisors, and leadership. Provosts, for example, move out of the academic ranks and I’d bet that most of them have never had any training in being a leader — especially re: the business side of higher ed.

Staff members are key to all institutions of higher education, yet many of them are second-class citizens on many (most?) campuses. They have limited say and even more limited budgets. Even though they have transformed institutions — such as the case with providing online/blended/hyflex-learning — they aren’t lifted up.

For myself, if I didn’t feel like I was growing and learning, I felt stagnant. That’s why blogging has been so wonderful and important to me through the years. The budgets for training one’s staff are very important — as staff members need to stay marketable and relevant. As with most others in the workplace, staff and faculty members may need to reinvent themselves from time to time. Hopefully, this type of growth/reinvention is being supported by the institutions of traditional higher education out there.

Speaking of the workplace and higher education, you might be interested in The Job newsletter. This week’s edition was interesting indeed!

Reflections on “Higher Education in Motion: The Digital and Cultural Transformations Ahead” [O’Brien]

On 10/20/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Alternatives, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, culture, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, disruption, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, Google, health, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, leadership, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, more voice more choice more control, new business models, online learning, reinvent, staying relevant, strategy, student-related, surviving, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, traditional / tradition, ubiquitous learning, United States, universities, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

Higher Education in Motion: The Digital and Cultural Transformations Ahead — from er.educause.edu by John O’Brien

Excerpts (emphasis DSC):

In 2015 when Janet Napolitano, then president of the University of California, responded to what she saw as a steadily growing “chorus of doom” predicting the demise of higher education, she did so with a turn of phrase that captured my imagination and still does. She said that higher education is not in crisis. “Instead, it is in motion, and it always has been.”

A brief insert by DSC:
Yes. In other words, it’s a learning ecosystem — with constant morphing & changing going on.

“We insisted then, and we continue to insist now, that digital transformation amounts to deep and coordinated change that substantially reshapes the operations, strategic directions, and value propositions of colleges and universities and that this change is enabled by culture, workforce, and technology shifts.
…
The tidal movement to digital transformation is linked to a demonstrably broader recognition of the strategic role and value of technology professionals and leaders on campus, another area of long-standing EDUCAUSE advocacy. For longer than we have talked about digital transformation, we have insisted that technology must be understood as a strategic asset, not a utility, and that senior IT leaders must be part of the campus strategic decision-making. But the idea of a strategic role for technology had disappointing traction among senior campus leaders before 2020.

From DSC:
The Presidents, Provosts, CIO’s, board members, influential faculty members, and other members of institutions’ key leadership positions who didn’t move powerfully forward with online-based learning over the last two+ decades missed the biggest thing to hit societies’ ability to learn in 500+ years — the Internet. Not since the invention of the printing press has learning had such an incredible gust of wind put in its sails. The affordances have been staggering, with millions of people now being educated in much less expensive ways (MOOCs, YouTube, LinkedIn Learning, other). Those who didn’t move forward with online-based learning in the past are currently scrambling to even survive. We’ll see how many close their doors as the number of effective alternatives increases.

Instead of functioning as a one-time fix during the pandemic, technology has become ubiquitous and relied upon to an ever-increasing degree across campus and across the student experience.

Moving forward, best of luck to those organizations who don’t have their CIOs at the decision-making table and reporting directly to the Presidents — and hopefully those CIO’s are innovative and visionary to begin with. Best of luck to those institutions who refuse to look up and around to see that the world has significantly changed from the time they got their degrees.

The current mix of new realities creates an opportunity for an evolution and, ideally, a synchronized reimagination of higher education overall. This will be driven by technology innovation and technology professionals—and will be made even more enduring by a campus culture of care for students, faculty, and staff.

Time will tell if the current cultures within many traditional institutions of higher education will allow them to adapt/change…or not.

Along the lines of transformations in our learning ecosystems, also see:

OPINION: Let’s use the pandemic as a dress-rehearsal for much-needed digital transformation — from hechingerreport.org by Jean-Claude Brizard
Schools must get ready for the next disruption and make high-quality learning available to all

Excerpts:

We should use this moment to catalyze a digital transformation of education that will prepare schools for our uncertain future.

What should come next is an examination of how schools can more deeply and deliberately harness technology to make high-quality learning accessible to every learner, even in the wake of a crisis. That means a digital transformation, with three key levers for change: in the classroom, in schools and at the systems level.
…
Platforms like these help improve student outcomes by enhancing teachers’ ability to meet individual students’ needs. They also allow learners to master new skills at their own pace, in their own way.

As Digital Transformation in Schools Continues, the Need for Enterprising IT Leaders Grows — from edtechmagazine.com by Ryan Petersen

K-12 IT leaders move beyond silos to make a meaningful impact inside and outside their schools.According to Korn Ferry’s research on enterprise leadership, “Enterprise leaders envision and grow; scale and create. They go beyond by going across the enterprise, optimizing the whole organization and its entire ecosystem by leading outside what they can control. These are leaders who see their role as being a participant in diverse and dynamic communities.”

77% of adults think it would be hard to pay for college, according to survey [Seltzer]

On 10/16/2022, in Alternatives, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, higher education, leadership, learning ecosystem, parents/guardians, student-related, surviving, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

77% of adults think it would be hard to pay for college, according to survey — from highereddive.com by Rick Seltzer

Excerpt:

Women were more likely than men to call a college education unaffordable, 82% vs. 73%. The survey found 80% of Black respondents, 78% of Hispanic respondents, and 77% of White respondents said college would be difficult to afford.
Community colleges and two-year colleges were viewed as the most affordable option — 65% of respondents said they considered them affordable. That was ahead of vocational and professional certificate programs, which 57% of respondents viewed as affordable.

DSC: Not sure what I think of this article, but I like the emphasis on lifelong learning!

On 10/10/2022, in adult learning, business, career development, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, culture, future, lifelong learning, reinvent, skills, society, staying relevant, surviving, training / L&D, United States, workplace, by Daniel Christian

New Unionization, Upskilling And The Future Of Work — from forbes.com by Daphne Kis

From DSC:
I’m not sure what I think of this article as a whole, but I like the emphasis on lifelong learning! here are some relevant excerpts, for example:

In particular, workers and businesses should take this moment to partner around the issue of education and forge new agreements about employer-provided training and reskilling.
…
This approach, however, is inadequate to deal with the demands of today’s global information economy, which demands continual upskilling on the part of workers.
…
As true job security can only be generated by continued education and training, this is in the interest of all parties.

“We need to replenish skills throughout a working career, and this calls for revisiting the models and concept of lifelong learning to create the future we want.”

Why Some Teachers Don’t Want to Go ‘Back to Normal’ [Lempres]

On 09/21/2022, in career development, change, K-12 related, leadership, learning ecosystem, reinvent, staying relevant, student-related, surviving, teachers, by Daniel Christian

Why Some Teachers Don’t Want to Go ‘Back to Normal’ — from edsurge.com by Daniel Lempres

Excerpts:

“My school did not drive me out of education. My students did not drive me out of education,” Aion says. Instead, he says he left because the lack of support and the deep systemic flaws in education had finally become too much. Aion says he was tired of pretending things were back to their pre-pandemic “normal,” and tired of pretending that “normal” had been working for students in the first place.
…
For educators like Aion and Bowyer, the expectation that public education would “return to normal” is one of the factors that pushed them out of the profession.
…
Her students were excited for her, and enthusiastically asked about what she would do instead of teaching them math. “I started crying in the middle of class,” Bowyer says. “And I said, ‘I don’t know, I don’t actually want to leave, I want to be here and I want to do this. But I don’t think I can anymore.’”

Teachers Are Ready for Systemic Change. Are Schools? — from edweek.org by Madeline Will
Schools need effective, transformative change. Leaders must be ready to take it on

Excerpt:

So many people in education—from teachers to U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona—have called this moment, as schools emerge from the darkest shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, our chance for a “reset in education.”

It’s a sentiment that repeatedly comes up in my interviews with teachers. They wonder if the pandemic’s disruption of schools was a once-in-a-generation chance to transform the education system, which is riddled with inequities and pedagogical practices that date back decades.

Some educators also wonder if we’re on the verge of squandering such a chance. That may be; in the rush to get students back on track, we’re at risk for overlooking many of the lessons learned from the last couple years.

“The teachers know what works,” Kelly said. “We need more people to not only listen to teachers, but we also need them to implement the things that teachers say.”

From DSC:
If the K12 learning ecosystems out there don’t change, students, families — and teachers — may let their feet do the walking. We’re seeing a similar situation within higher education, with mostly students’ feet who are starting to do the walking (to alternatives). Some employers’ feet are getting itchy to walk as well.

If you were going to weigh the power that each area holds, what would you put on the weight employers have to effect change these days? Institutions of higher education? Students and their families? Hmmm…change needs to be in the air. The status quo hasn’t been working well within K-12 or within higher education.

Also relevant within K-12, see:

Exit Interview: Why This Veteran Teacher is Leaving the Profession — from edsurge.com by Jennifer Yoo-Brannon

Excerpt:

It’s a frank and sometimes emotional conversation between Jennifer Yoo-Brannon, an instructional coach at El Monte Union High School District in California, and Diana Bell, a veteran teacher of more than 18 years who recently decided to leave the profession. They talk about what led to that departure and how teaching could change to better support educators.

Many Eyes Are on the Teachers Who Leave. What About the Ones Who Stay? — from edsurge.com by Patrick Harris II

Excerpt:

My own experience sits among countless narratives from other teachers, including teachers of the year, revealing the difficulty and the emotion behind the decision to leave a school—and for some, the choice to part ways with a system that never had their best interest at heart.

A lesser told story is the plight of the teachers who stay behind. The emotional narratives about their experiences, their feelings and the pressures they carry.

What if smart TVs’ new killer app was a next-generation learning-related platform? [Christian]

On 09/06/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, adult learning, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, collaboration, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, Design Thinking, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, digital storytelling, digital textbooks, digital video, disruption, distance education, e-publishing related items (EPUB and more), education, education technology, educational games / serious games, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, legislatures / government / legal, liberal arts, library / librarians, lifelong learning, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, online learning, online media, online tutoring, personalized/customized learning, platforms, second screen apps, skills, smart classrooms, smart/connected TV, social learning / networks, society, staying relevant, strategy, streams of content, surviving, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, telepresence, television, tools, training / L&D, transmedia, trends, ubiquitous learning, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, Virtual courts and law firms, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, Web3, webinars, by Daniel Christian

TV makers are looking beyond streaming to stay relevant — from protocol.com by Janko Roettgers and Nick Statt

Excerpts:

The search for TV’s next killer app
TV makers have some reason to celebrate these days: Streaming has officially surpassed cable and broadcast as the most popular form of TV consumption; smart TVs are increasingly replacing external streaming devices; and the makers of these TVs have largely figured out how to turn those one-time purchases into recurring revenue streams, thanks to ad-supported services.
…
What TV makers need is a new killer app. Consumer electronics companies have for some time toyed with the idea of using TV for all kinds of additional purposes, including gaming, smart home functionality and fitness. Ad-supported video took priority over those use cases over the past few years, but now, TV brands need new ways to differentiate their devices.

Turning the TV into the most useful screen in the house holds a lot of promise for the industry. To truly embrace this trend, TV makers might have to take some bold bets and be willing to push the envelope on what’s possible in the living room.

From DSC:
What if smart TVs’ new killer app was a next-generation learning-related platform? Could smart TVs deliver more blended/hybrid learning? Hyflex-based learning?
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Or what if smart TVs had to do with delivering telehealth-based apps? Or telelegal/virtual courts-based apps?

A very solid question: “What role do CFOs play in the Great Resignation?” [Keating]

On 09/03/2022, in adult learning, business, career development, change, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, leadership, skills, staying relevant, strategy, surviving, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

What role do CFOs play in the Great Resignation? — from chieflearningofficer.com by Keith Keating

Excerpt:

People are unhappy with their jobs, opportunities and employers’ treatment. Many feel constricted and unable to advance their careers because their companies fail to provide efficient learning and development programs. According to a McKinsey report, 41 percent of employees said the lack of opportunity for professional progress was the principal reason they left.

Their workplaces had no room for personal or career growth, forcing them to look elsewhere. Moreover, 94 percent said they wouldn’t resign their jobs had their employers invested in learning and development.

That is a grave problem. Gallup’s 2021 report found that turnover costs one trillion dollars to U.S. businesses per year.

Would companies be able to prevent this issue if their chief financial officers took L&D programs more seriously?

From DSC:
That seems like a very solid question to me.

Also relevant/see:

Succession Planning Requires Continuous Learning Culture — from learningsolutionsmag.com by Pamela Hogle

Howard University receives 2 bomb threats in a week as some HBCU students say they feel forgotten after no arrests in previous threats [Germain]

On 08/31/2022, in dangers of the status quo, ethics, face-to-face, hearts -- matters of the heart, higher education, relationships, society, sociology, student-related, surviving, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Howard University receives 2 bomb threats in a week as some HBCU students say they feel forgotten after no arrests in previous threats — from cnn.com by Jacquelyne Germain

Excerpt:

(CNN) As Howard University students returned to campus on Monday for the start of the fall semester, the university received two bomb threats just months after the school and other historically Black colleges and universities had to lock down or postpone classes because of similar threats.

From DSC:
I wonder if the response would look different if this happened at one of the Ivy League schools…? Yeh, probably so. Either way, this is incredibly sad that this happens at all.

Addendum on 9/2/22:

DHS details response to HBCU bomb threats but says ‘much more’ needs to be done — from highereddive.com by Natalie Schwartz

State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report [Gallup] + six other items re: the workplace

On 08/29/2022, in Africa, Asia, Australia, business, Canada, career development, Europe, India, reinvent, society, sociology, staying relevant, surviving, UK, United States, workplace, by Daniel Christian

State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report — from gallup.com

This annual report represents the collective voice of the global employee. In this edition, the pandemic and its aftershock continued to disrupt the workplace. Check out the most recent employee data and workplace trends in the State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report.

Explore Key Findings
The pulse of the global workplace is low, but it’s still beating. Our findings depict a difficult 2021, but leave much room for leaders to ask, “How am I creating a thriving workplace for my employees today?”

Also relevant/see:

Job unhappiness is at a staggering all-time high, according to Gallup — from cnbc.com by Leah Collins

Key Points:

The job market continues to boom, with millions of workers still leaving their jobs each month despite talk of a slowing economy and recession.
Also booming, according to Gallup polling, worker disengagement and unhappiness.
This is not just an HR issue but a bottom line one as well: business units with engaged workers have 23% higher profit, while employees who are not engaged cost the world $7.8 trillion in lost productivity, equal to 11% of global GDP.

The Backlash Against Quiet Quitting Is Getting Loud — from wsj.com by Kathryn DillFollow and Angela YangFollow
First came the viral phenomenon. Now critics are taking to task those who advocate for coasting on the job.

2 years of pandemic, war, and climate crisis have made many Americans rethink work as just ‘silly little jobs’ — from businessinsider.com by Juliana Kaplan

Work smarter, not harder: Gen Z is driving the ‘quiet quitting’ trend — but is it as negative as it seems? Young professionals are weighing in — from linkedin.com by Gianna Prudente

The anti-work movement — from axios.com by Erica Pandey

What’s happening: This is a rebellion against the “rise and grind” ethos.

The rising approach is to work to live, instead of live to work. Don’t leave your job — but focus on fun, fulfilling activities outside of work while staying on the payroll.

Execs anticipate job cuts — from linkedin.com by Joseph Gobran

Excerpt:

Business leaders are seemingly optimistic right now. More than 83% of CEOs are focusing business strategy on growth as just 30% see recession as a serious risk within the next year, according to a recent PwC survey of over 700 executives in the U.S. It’s a cautious optimism — companies are still preparing for economic risks. About 50% of CEOs plan on reducing company headcount and 44% plan on rescinding job offers. Despite potential cuts, 64% of execs said they plan on raising salaries for current employees.

What would it take for higher education to develop/offer such “capability academies?” [Christian]

On 08/26/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adjunct faculty, career development, changing business models, colleges, communities of practice, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, curriculum, Daniel S. Christian, Design Thinking, experimentation, faculty, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning spaces, lifelong learning, microlearning, more voice more choice more control, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, personalized/customized learning, platforms, society, staying relevant, streams of content, surviving, traditional / tradition, training / L&D, United States, universities, user experience (UX), using teams, vision/possibilities, vocational / trades, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Below are some reflections based on an article entitled, Understanding learning transfer through Archwell Academies. It’s from chieflearningofficer.com and was written by Erin Donovan and Keith Keating.

Excerpt:

To capitalize on learning transfer and extend learning beyond traditional training periods, practitioners have established capability academies. According to Josh Bersin, capability academies are the evolution of traditional training and self-directed learning. Bersin posited:

Capability academies are business-driven, collaborative learning environments that facilitate learning retention. . . . Going beyond rote lessons, capability academies help companies prepare for transformation by helping employees develop complex skills and providing guidance on how to apply them in the context of the business.

The core concept of capability academies rests on the importance of collaboration between the trainers and the business. The intention is to provide learners with practice of conceptual understanding and comparative scenarios in the context and environment where they will ultimately apply their skills. Capability academies focus on providing training distinctly aligning with learners’ job responsibilities.

From DSC:
First of all, I have a lot of respect for the people that this article mentions, such as Josh Bersin and Will Thalheimer. So this article caught me eye.

It seems to me that the corporate world is asking for institutions of traditional higher education to deliver such “capability academies.” But that makes me wonder, could this even be done? Surely there aren’t enough resources to develop/deliver/maintain so many environments and contexts, right? It took Archwell, a global mortgage services outsourcing provider, an entire year to systematically design and develop such customized capability academies — just for their clients’ businesses.

The article goes on:

The core concept of capability academies rests on the importance of collaboration between the trainers and the business. The intention is to provide learners with practice of conceptual understanding and comparative scenarios in the context and environment where they will ultimately apply their skills. Capability academies focus on providing training distinctly aligning with learners’ job responsibilities.

Context. Skills. Acquiring knowledge. Being able to apply that knowledge in a particular environment. Wow…that’s a lot to ask institutions of traditional higher education to deliver. And given the current setup, it’s simply not going to happen. Faculty members’ plates are already jammed-packed. They don’t have time to go out and collaborate with each business in their area (even with more sabbaticals…I don’t see it happening).

I’m sure many at community colleges could chime in here and would likely say that that’s exactly what they are doing. But I highly doubt that they are constantly delivering this type of customized offering for all of the businesses in each major city in their area.

I can hear those in corporate training programs saying that that’s what they are doing for their own business. But they don’t provide it for other businesses in their area.

So, what would it take for higher education to develop/offer such “capability academies?” Is it even possible?

We continue to struggle to design the ultimate learning ecosystem(s) — one(s) whereby we can provide personalized learning experiences for each person and business. We need to continue to practice design thinking here, as we seek to provide valuable, relevant/up-to-date, and cradle-to-grave learning experiences.

The problem is, the pace of change has changed. Institutions of traditional higher education can’t keep up. And frankly, neither can most businesses out there.

I keep wondering if a next-generation learning platform — backed up by AI but delivered with human expertise — will play a role in the future. The platform would offer products and services from teams of individuals — and/or from communities of practices — who can provide customized, up-to-date training materials and the learning transfers that this article discusses.

But such a platform would have to offer socially-based learning experiences and opportunities for accountability. Specific learning goals and learning cohorts help keep one on track and moving forward.

Learning Ecosystems

To future-proof a workforce, kill the perpetual hiring machine and embrace lifelong learning [Dillow]

What’s Stopping You from Reinventing Your Career? [Cairns-Lee & Fischer]

Reflections on “Attention higher-ed leaders: Faculty and staff have something to say” [Landon]

DSC: Not sure what I think of this article, but I like the emphasis on lifelong learning!

A very solid question: “What role do CFOs play in the Great Resignation?” [Keating]

State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report [Gallup] + six other items re: the workplace

What would it take for higher education to develop/offer such “capability academies?” [Christian]

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